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When the Machine goes into harvest I get pressures that correspond to the book (170Head/80-85Suction) however, the ice will come free on the left hand side of the evaporator, and then melt out of the right side until it finally drops(it eventually locks out on long harvest). I used sanitizer but it made no difference. One thing I noticed was the discharge line would start out at 160 plus degrees, and then would be room temperature, but the pressure was still 80 to 85 lbs. I find it hard to be under charged being my pressures are so close, but could this be the case?

On a side note, it is always the right hand side of the evaporator that gets "stuck"

Sounds like a classic case of evaporator grid separation. Shine a flashlight in the ice free grid where it sticks. I think you will find the grid separating from the evap plate. If so throw the machine away and buy a new one.

Originally posted by frozensolid Sounds like a classic case of evaporator grid separation. Shine a flashlight in the ice free grid where it sticks. I think you will find the grid separating from the evap plate. If so throw the machine away and buy a new one.

It is a half dice machine, and some of the cross sections of the grid do move slightly(or do stick out of the plate slightly). Also, at one point in the grid it looks like someone grinded the cross section or it somehow got burnt or damaged, manager says no one torched it. I used Nu-Calgons Nickel-Safe Ice Machine Cleaner which meets Manitowoc’s specification #GES-6 and a soft brush. I had a feeling the machine was shot.

On a side note, the machine is from 96. At what point do you tell your customer it has outlived its useful life and is not worth repairing?

Originally posted by frozensolid Sounds like a classic case of evaporator grid separation. Shine a flashlight in the ice free grid where it sticks. I think you will find the grid separating from the evap plate. If so throw the machine away and buy a new one.

sounds like a bad evaporator plate

I agree w/ other posts sounds like you need a new evaporator plate. They are easy to replace. I have always wanted to try and replace the damaged grids just for fun, but have not attempted it yet. curious if any one out there has done this successfully?